He has put Caustic soda into the drain

[emanresu]

Quote:
Originally Posted by Cass
NaOH (Sodium Hydroxide, Lye, caustic soda) does not congeal. The hardning comes from the exotherm process. The lye heats up and fuses together when you don't add enough water to dry lye by putting to much dry lye in the trap . It fuses together forming a hard lump that will disolve very slowly if fresh water is introduced. This is hard to do in a trap.

OK, thought I start a fresh thread for this....

A friend of mine (honestly!) has put some caustic soda down his shower drain, forgot about it (!!!) and now it has solidified and water isn't shifting it.

Do you know what will dissolve it? I have sugested vinegar and advised him to beware of any fumes...

Thanks for any help you can give.

[Verdeboy]

NaOH + HCl = NaCl + H2O

But, It might be dangerous to do an acid - base reaction in your tub.

So, it's probably best to just use a snake to bust it up and send it down the drain.

PS: If you are crazy enough to pour Hydrochloric acid down the drain, at least have the fan going and windows open and have the tub partially filled with water.

[emanresu]

Thanks, I'll pass that on.

Was my idea of vinegar any good (my Chemistry knowledge has been left behind in long past school days)? I was thinking of acid versus alkali.

[Verdeboy]

Vinegar is acetic acid (CH3COOH) which also reacts with Sodium Hydroxide (NaOH) to produce Sodium Acetate salt trihydrate (Ch3COONa 3H2O). This salt is much more hazardous than NaCl, but then again, Hydrochoric acid is much more dangerous than Vinegar.

You'll have the same problem reacting away the NaOH as you are having trying to dissolve it in water. There is very little surface area to work with, since it has formed this hardened mass.

Have you tried dissolving the NaOH in very hot water?

I used to be a chemist once, and in my first year, I almost killed myself and everone else in the room trying to make a base bath. I poured several pounds of NaOH pellets into a plastic tub in the sink, turned on the hot water, and then walked away. Soon, a noxious cloud of caustic death began to form above the sink, and people began coughing and yelling. Someone had the good sense to carry the tub to a fume hood and evacuate the room.

So, if you use hot water, make sure the windows are open.

[emanresu]

Well, I heard tonight that he cleared it.

He bought a bottle of Sulphuric Acid (sold as a outside drain cleaner) from an ironmonger or 'homeware' store. The first small drop didn't do much, maybe
because it was diluted by the water sitting in the trap, so he poured some
more in and just dodged out the way in time as it erupted out of the plughole!


He says it smells a bit, but he was very impressed by the reaction.

[plumber1]

There is a damn good lesson here................

[Verdeboy]

He says it smells a bit, but he was very impressed by the reaction.

Was that the chemical reaction or the reaction of his family to the loud explosion and fire?

Seriously, though, if anyone else wants to perform an acid-base reaction in their drainpipe, at least where rubber gloves, goggles, and a respirator, have plenty of ventilation, and use a greatly diluted acid. That will slow down the reaction and prevent deadly projectiles from being shot out of the drain.

[Cass]

He is very lucky he doesn't have any burns and can still see.

[hj]

And breathe.

[master plumber mark]

Caistoc soda is pretty mean stuff

then you add some acid to the mix.....

probably stunk up the house real good....


does he still have a shower trap ???